RWC: McCaw pleads for square deal in scrums

Richie McCaw makes his point at scrum time against Georgia. Photo / Getty Images

Richie McCaw's final words on the Millennium Stadium pitch before he was replaced in the second half were to referee Pascal Gauzere.

"Make sure they scrum square, ref," he said, his frustrations at how the Georgians were allowed to angle in and earn penalties against the All Blacks clear for all to see and hear. The French official thanked him politely for the advice.

McCaw felt the need to say it because, once again, the sight of re-set scrums and resulting penalties were an eyesore but, if the World Cup is a giant puzzle, the All Blacks believe the challenge they received at the set piece will help them complete it.

Image 1 of 12: All Blacks captain Richie McCaw before the Pool C match between New Zealand and Georgia. Photo / Brett Phibbs

The massive Georgian pack was clearly dominant in the shove (until the additions of replacements Tony Woodcock and Owen Franks), but not all of it was legal and the presentation of such a test could be a valuable learning experience.

Hooker Dane Coles got a close-up view of how Levan Chilachava, a 125kg prop who plays for Toulon, angled in, and said afterwards: "We're not used to that shearing across. Just different mindsets from different teams.

"We like to get the ball in and out and they scrum for a penalty. It's just the way it is. It is a bit frustrating but some of the other teams in the tournament scrum like that so we have to learn to adapt.

"We tried our best out there but we got on the bad side of the ref."

All Blacks v Georgia - Image slideshow

Coach Steve Hansen agreed the scrum was an area of difficulty, along with the consistent handling errors which all but halted his side's momentum for 30 minutes.

"The Georgians scrummed well," he said. "They tried to shear across and we had to try to keep the tighthead square and that was difficult at times but we worked our way through it."

One of the Hansen's big selection calls was the promotion of Wyatt Crockett and Charlie Faumuina to starting roles ahead of Woodcock and Franks and the latter pair appeared to make an immediate impact on arrival after 60 minutes. However, Hansen said it was too simplistic to say they handled the pressure better.

"That's the pattern that's happening," he said. "The guys that start, they've got to work hard. Their job is to take a bit of steam out of the scrum and the guys who come on, their job is to take advantage of that. I'm pretty happy."

For Coles, the scorer of the bonus-point try thanks to the inside run and perfect pass from skipper McCaw, the physical battering will do his team good ahead of their final pool match against Tonga in Newcastle next Saturday.

"We've had the games now, we've just got to put it together for 80 minutes because Tonga aren't going to lie down."